Food Standards Agency Awards

The Flintshire School Nutrition Resource Boxes Project has won an AFAL Runners-up Award as part of the Food Standards Agency Wales’ 2009 AFAL Award Scheme. The scheme recognises individual or team contributions to local nutrition initiatives that have made a positive impact on the diet or eating habits in the communities they serve. The award of £1000 and a celebratory hand made wooden plate was recently presented at the Flintshire Appetite for Life event at the Holiday Inn in Flintshire. Sarah Powell-Jones Dietetic Assistant and Sarah Wisbey School Nurse from the North Wales NHS Trust East Division were extremely proud to receive the award on behalf of all those who have been involved in the project since it began in the late 1990s.

The school nutrition resource boxes offer Flintshire schools and the wider community user friendly materials to promote healthy eating in a fun and interactive way. The resources are widely used across the county to support curriculum based work, school health events and community education, 'cook and taste' projects. The strong partnership working between Dietitians, School Nurses and our partners in the Flintshire Good Health Good Care team, Healthy Schools Team and Local Public Health Service has been the real strength behind the project. All involved were thrilled to receive special recognition for their part in developing what has proven to be a very successful, sustainable resource.

Alys Roberts, Flintshire Appetite for Life Dietitian who nominated the project for the award commented “The nutrition boxes have proved themselves to be an excellent resource, promoting and encouraging good nutrition in school aged children. They compliment the successful early work taking place in Flintshire around the Welsh Assembly Governments Appetite for Life action plan, which aims to improve the nutritional standards of food and drink in schools via a partnership approach with key local agencies”